Jo Mama's Spaghetti Sauce

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"My kids will give up a steak dinner for this spaghetti. It is a recipe I have been perfecting for years and it is so good (if I may humbly say) that my kids are disappointed when they eat spaghetti anywhere else but home! In fact they tell me I should open a restaurant and serve only this spaghetti and garlic bread. In response to requests, I have posted the recipe for Jo Mama's World Famous Lasagna that uses approximately 1/2 of the sauce from this recipe. Have spaghetti one night and lasagna later! Thanks to all of you who have tried my recipe and have written a review. I read and appreciate every one of them! Chef Note: After I posted this recipe I remembered a funny incident--my dear husband usually has a nice bottle of wine handy so when I make a batch of spaghetti I just help myself to a splash of it. On one occasion, there wasn't a bottle opened, but there was a bottle sitting on the counter so I got out the corkscrew and helped myself. For some reason, the spaghetti that night was the best ever. My husband asked what wine I put in it and I showed him the bottle. He nearly fell off the chair. I had opened a rather expensive bottle he had bought to give his boss. Goes to show you--don't use a wine for cooking you wouldn't drink. You get the best results from a good wine!"

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Ingredients

  • 2 lbs Italian sausage, casings removed (mild or hot)
  • 1 small onion, chopped (optional)
  • 3 -4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
  • 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
  • 2 (15 ounce) cans tomato sauce
  • 2 cups water (for a long period of simmering for flavors to meld. If you don't want to simmer it as long, add less)
  • 3 teaspoons basil
  • 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 teaspoon fresh coarse ground black pepper
  • 1/4 cup red wine (a good Cabernet!)
  • 1 lb thin spaghetti
  • parmesan cheese

Preparation

Step 1

1. In large, heavy stockpot, brown Italian sausage, breaking up as you stir. Add onions and continue to cook, stirring occasionally until onions are softened. Add garlic, tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce and water. Add basil, parsley, brown sugar, salt, crushed red pepper, and black pepper. Stir well and barely bring to a boil. Stir in red wine.

2. Simmer on low, stirring frequently for at least an hour. A longer simmer makes for a better sauce, just be careful not to let it burn!

3. Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Spoon sauce over drained spaghetti noodles and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
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REVIEWS: (1003)

This Was EXCELLENT, Permanent Keeper in our house! I followed other’s suggestions of only ½ the water, and only 1 lb. of Italian sausage + 1 lb of ground beef and it turned out great. I will Definitely be making this again! This does make a lot, enough to freeze for another meal. I did add double garlic and onions in it because we like them so much. P.S. Our daughter thinks the name (Jo Mama's World Famous Spaghetti) is cool too, and spaghetti is her favorite. Usually she asks if the sauce is Ragu or not, then she grabs the garlic powder. I don't that's gonna happen for supper tonight. Thanks for another great Keeper! P.S. It didn't happen tonight, everyone loved it!

I used 1 lb. HOT Italian sausage & 1 lb. ground chuck. I only used enough water to rinse all the tomato cans. I also added 1 large jar sliced mushrooms and 1 can sliced black olives. It has been simmering now for 1 1/2 hours (I intend to go for 2-3), tastes UNBELIEVABLY good, and is definitely the best I've ever made (and I've tried many recipes).

This is by far, the best Spaghetti Sauce I have tasted! All those years of perfecting definitely paid off!

This recipe was good. The ingredients all worked well together, and the wine added a nice flavor. I used 1 lb. hamburger and 1 lb. Italian sausage (personal preference). I did think the sauce would/should have been thicker. There seemed to be a lot of meat and not enough "tomato" sauce. Maybe I'll add only 1 lb. of meat next time.

I like the flavor that the sausage gives to this recipe. It makes a nice change from ground beef flavor. Like most cooks, I modified the recipe slightly. I used about a half pound of sweet Italian sausage, which I cooked and then drained on paper towels to remove as much grease as possible. The sauce is nice and thick and works well for Once A Month Cooking because it freezes nicely. I'll make this one again. UPDATE: I won't be buying the bottled sauce any more and I threw out my old spaghetti sauce recipe! I have several containers of this sauce in my freezer now. The one change I made was to lower the fat content by using only 1/2 pound of sweet Italian sausage. I fried the sausage and drained it well before using. The taste is still great even with much less meat. I put this recipe in my Once a Month Cooking file.

This is excellent! I made it with 1 pound ground beef and 1 pound mild italian sausage and I simmered it for about 2 1/2 hours. And, we haven't actually had it as a meal yet, but of course I tried it before I put it in the freezer for a later date. It is GOOD!

Tastes very good but next time I make it I will only put in 1 pound of sausage. My DH is very picky when it comes to spaghetti sauce and he liked this one. Very easy to make also.

Wow, this was a great sauce - restaurant quality in my opinion! I followed the recipe exactly (mild Italian sausage), and simmered for about 2 1/2 hours. It had an excellent flavor with the ingredients all melded together, and I loved the bite from the crushed red pepper. My husband LOVED the Italian sausage (I usually use ground beef), and he picked your recipe hands down over my mom's recipe (and I have to agree). Lucky for him this recipe makes 4 quarts because there is sauce in the freezer for later. This has become my new spaghetti sauce recipe. Thanks! NOTE: Next time I might drain my sausage just to be a little more health conscious but I will tell you that I was surprised that I didn't notice the sausage grease in the sauce because it was a homogeneous mixture (no separation).

This is one of the best spaghetti sauce recipes I have tried!! I used lean ground beef instead of the sausage and fresh herbs - wow!! We had plenty of leftover sauce so I used the rest as a base for my lasagna - yummy! I took the other's advice and reduced the water amount - glad I did! I also cooked my sauce on low for approximately 5 hours. Great recipe , this is one we will use again and again!!

I've been searching for a good sauce for a long time and I think I finally found one. It has a medium thick consistency and held its own on spaghetti without running. I made it with about 3/4 lb. of both lean hamburger and hot Italian sausage. I used enough water to rinse out the cans, and perhaps 1/3 cup red wine. I might try adding mushrooms and some diced green bell pepper next batch. Overall, this is a keeper!


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